- The written memorials of over 500 people who had myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) were analyzed in a new study in PLoS One. Researchers found themes of clinical neglect and broad institutional failure, among others, as they evaluated lived experiences and deaths from the perspective of those close to people with ME. Suicide was frequently featured as a cause of death, though some deaths were directly attributed to ME. The study’s results are a blaring alarm for the societal abandonment of people with the disease. One father was quoted in a memorial for his adult child and said of ME, “There are things in this world worse than death.”
- A new study in Pediatric Research found microclots in the blood of children with Long COVID. The study enrolled 61 children with the disease and compared them with 23 controls, and discovered that those with cardiovascular symptoms had an increased risk of small clots and endothelial (blood vessel lining) injury. The study also found that inflammation from a type of white blood cells called neutrophils, triggered by the spike protein, contribute to endothelial damage. “A combination of microclots, neutrophil markers, endothelial cytokines, and potentially circulating spike protein could serve as biomarkers for Long COVID,” a press release stated.
- A third cancer drug is being trialed for Long COVID. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is testing Keytruda (Pembrolizumab), a monoclonal antibody that treats various cancers, in a small Phase 1 study. The trial will enroll 15 participants with Long COVID, who will receive one dose of the drug and undergo many tests, including a spinal tap, over numerous in-person visits. Other cancer drugs being trialed for Long COVID include the monoclonal antibody Anktiva and rapamycin. The Keytruda study is not yet recruiting. Contact: Ladifatou Fouanta, ladifatou.fouanta@nih.gov.
